Council on Foreign Relations Event, October 3, 2025
At the Council on Foreign Relations, the Council on Foreign Relations think tank in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States, on Friday, October 3, 2025 (11 Mehr), and answered questions from participants at the meeting. At the session, titled "Does Iran Have a Democratic Future?", the prince, referring to his efforts to amplify the voice of the Iranian people on the path to freedom, said: "My role is not to run for a political office. Rather, my role is to create the greatest possible opportunity for my compatriots to free themselves and ultimately, through the ballot box and by referendum, decide what government they want; what I would ultimately like to replace this religious dictatorship with is a secular and democratic government." The main points of Prince Reza Pahlavi's remarks at the session were as follows: * The regime's nuclear ambitions have cost the country more than $1 trillion. * If you listen today to Iran's Generation Z, they tell the generation that revolted in 1979: "What did you think you were doing that put us in this situation? How are we supposed to free ourselves from its consequences?" * The people of Iran have the right to seek justice; the day they appear in court will come, and perpetrators and officials must answer for their crimes. * The people of Iran do not blame the West or the United States for their poverty. They blame the regime and all the actions that led the country to this point. * This regime is the primary cause of our misery; only by dismantling it will Iran have the opportunity to prosper. * Iran is neither Iraq nor Afghanistan; Iran's civil society, despite repression, is alive and vibrant and has the capacity to govern the country. * We Iranians are in a battle with this regime and are prepared to endure hardships to save ourselves. * Iran after the Islamic Republic can, by elevating the Abraham Accords to a "Cyrus Pact," become a hub of peace in the Middle East. * We ask the free world for solidarity—the same solidarity that brought down communism and ended apartheid. But what we have seen so far has been nothing but appeasement and endless negotiations with this regime. You can watch the full session with Persian subtitles below:
